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Helping communities hit by extreme rainfall

Red Cross is on the ground providing support to communities in NSW, Victoria and ACT affected by recent heavy rainfall and floods.

Friday March 2, 2012

"We have Red Cross teams at Evacuation Centres in Cooma, Goulburn, and Bega, as well as in the Hawkesbury Valley in the north-west of Sydney, registering residents who have been forced to leave their homes and providing personal support and practical information on coping with the floods," said Di Jay, Executive Director for Red Cross in New South Wales.

"Red Cross staff and volunteers have also been taking calls at the Public Information and Inquiry Centre in Sydney from people seeking information about the floods and the assistance that is available to flood affected communities.

In the Australian Capital Territory, Red Cross is on alert as the Queanbeyan River is at risk of a major flood event and the organisation stands ready to assist with the evacuation of local residents.

"To date around 50 Red Cross people have been involved in the flood relief and recovery efforts across the south-east of the country. We have more volunteers on standby to ramp up our involvement if the situation worsens," said Ms Jay.

"As flood waters recede Red Cross will be there to support flood affected communities as part of the clean-up and recovery from this emergency."

In Victoria, heavy rainfall has caused rising river and creek levels and some flooding in the north of the State, including in the towns of Tallygaroopna and Congupna near Shepparton. Red Cross has contributed to relief efforts by providing personal support and registration services.

In addition to responding to this current flood emergency, Red Cross is continuing to provide support to communities in southern Queensland and northern New South Wales who are still cleaning-up from last month's floods.

To support the every day work of Red Cross helping people prepare for, respond to and recover from emergencies in Australia and around the world, please donate to Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery.

A number of resources, including guides to coping with an emergency and cleaning up after a flood, are available online.